What Syria’s New Temporary Constitution Says

Syria’s new government has adopted a temporary constitution that concentrates much power in the hands of the interim president and retains Islamic law as the foundation of the legal system.

The interim president, Ahmed al-Shara, signed the constitutional declaration on Thursday following the dissolution in January of the previous constitution under the authoritarian president, Bashar al-Assad. Mr. al-Shara, who led the overthrow of Mr. al-Assad in December, had promised to form an inclusive government and he heralded this as the beginning of what he called “a new history” for the nation after decades of dictatorship and a long civil war.

The declaration guarantees “freedom of opinion, expression, information, publication and press.” If upheld, this would be a dramatic departure from the draconian surveillance state under Mr. al-Assad. It also pledges to safeguard women’s rights and the rights of all Syrians during a five-year transitional period, after which a permanent constitution will be adopted and elections for a president and parliament will be held.

However, some among Syria’s diverse mix of ethnic and religious groups remain skeptical of the new leader’s sweeping promises to create an inclusive government because of his roots as the head of an Islamist extremist rebel group.

The president’s powers

The temporary constitution grants the president executive authority and the power to declare a state of emergency. The president will appoint one-third of the legislature, which will serve as an interim parliament for the transition period. The other two-thirds will be chosen by electoral commissions overseen by a committee appointed by the president.

The new constitution calls for judicial independence. But the president is solely responsible for appointing judges to Syria’s new constitutional court, the body ostensibly intended to hold Mr. al-Shara accountable. The document does not grant power to any other body to approve his appointments but specifies only that judges must be impartial.

Abdul Hamid al-Awak, a member of the committee that drafted the new constitution, told a news conference on Thursday that the declaration ensured a separation of powers as opposed to the concentration of power over other branches of government in Mr. al-Assad’s hands when he was in power.

But the sweeping authority that the new declaration keeps in the president’s hands during the transitional period could unnerve those in Syria who are hoping for a sharp turn away from the more than five decades of dictatorship under Mr. al-Assad and his father before him.

The United Nations’ special envoy for Syria, Guy Pedersen, said on Friday that he hoped the constitutional declaration “will move Syria toward restoring the rule of law and promoting an orderly inclusive transition.”

Islamic law will remain legal foundation

The temporary constitution has retained a provision that stipulates Syria’s president must be a Muslim, as did the old constitution. And like its precursor, the new constitution gives central importance to Islamic law. The new document says it will be the main source of legislation, while ensuring that “freedom of belief is guaranteed.”

However, all rights, including freedom of religion, may be curtailed if they are deemed to infringe on national security or public order, among other things, the constitution says.

Syria’s new government is led by Sunni Muslim former rebels who fought Mr. al-Assad during the country’s civil war. Since sweeping to power in Damascus, skeptics have questioned Mr. al-Shara’s true beliefs.

As a rebel leader, Mr. al-Shara commanded an Islamist armed group once allied with Al Qaeda. Some question whether he has truly abandoned his former hard-line jihadist views, even though his rebel group severed ties with Al Qaeda years before he took power.

Pledges to safeguard minorities

Syria is home to a diverse range of ethnic and religious groups, and the constitution promises to protect the rights of all Syrians and shield them from discrimination. But sectarian tensions linger, and they erupted viciously last week when Assad loyalists ambushed government security forces, prompting a harsh crackdown that devolved into sectarian attacks on civilians, according to the United Nations and war monitoring groups.

The war monitoring group Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said nearly 1,500 civilians were killed in just a few days of violence.

Those attacks appear to have been directed against the Alawite minority, an offshoot of Shiite Islam to which the Assad family belongs. The attacks were a reminder that Mr. al-Shara is still far from having secured control over all Syrian territory, and possibly even over all forces linked to the government.

The United States and European nations have been reluctant to lift Assad-era sanctions until Syria’s new leaders demonstrate that they are committed to an inclusive political process and to protecting minority rights. The lifting of those sanctions remains a crucial step to resurrecting the country’s battered economy — one of the most pressing challenges for Mr. al-Shara’s government.

Even though the constitution pledges to protect minority rights, it has sparked concern among at least one major ethnic minority, the Syrian Kurds.

The Syrian Democratic Council, the political wing of the Kurdish-led forces that control northeastern Syria, said the new document “reproduced authoritarianism in a new form” and criticized what it said were unchecked executive powers.

It is unclear whether Kurdish dissatisfaction with the constitution will affect an agreement reached this week between the country’s new government and the Kurdish-led forces backed by the United States to incorporate them into the government’s civil and military institutions.

Freedom, with some exceptions

The pledge to guarantee freedom of opinion, expression, information, publication and press” comes with some exceptions, including glorifying the Assad regime.

The constitutional declaration guarantees women’s rights to education and work, adding that they will have full “social, economic and political rights.”

Since his ascent to power, Mr. al-Shara has appeared keen to assuage domestic and international concerns over the role of women in the new Syria. In January, he delivered a speech using gender-sensitive language, rarely used by leaders in the region. He highlighted the role of women in the revolution, and the suffering they had experienced.